CONTACT

Monday, 30 May 2016

Lailyn works as an accountant for a private firm in Makati. It is a stressful job, and she decided she needed a break. So, late one afternoon I got a call from her and she asked about the resort, then made a booking for the weekend for an overnight stay camping.

She came alone, and Rather than leaving her all alone up in the camping area, I set up one of our small tents for her near the sea. That way she could be on her own but if she felt like some company she could easily spend time with Monny, Pipoy and me.

Lailyn likes to take photos, so she went exploring in the afternoon and took a lot of selfies. She arrived back around 3pm and had a late lunch, then after lunch took another walk with Pipoy. She took her phone and ipod and many of her photos show some of the beautiful scenes around the resort. When lailyn came back from that walk we had a snack under the mango tree and talked a lot and shared some stories.

She told me that when her mom from Mindanao comes to Manila to visit her, she plans to bring her mom to our resort. Lailyn said she didn't feel lonely, even though she was alone on her trip. As the sun was going down, she decided to go swimming with Mony and daughter, and Bugoy and Pipoy. They swam and played in the water, and there was still time for some more pictures.

As night fell, Lailyn joined with the other group relaxing, watching the bonfire. Because she only stayed one night she decided to go to bed early and the boat trip back in the morning leaves very early. Lailyn said she is going to ask her boss if they would spend their company outing at our resort.

Sunday, 22 May 2016

Before Jaira's group left, Lyn arrived with her mum Letty, her dad Frank, nephew Marcus and niece Maica. They arrived at Sawang, so Niña went to meet them and they all walked back through the village and the shady paths to the resort.
They arrived at the resort at noon. Lyn had asked for a meal with fish, so I served sinigang na maya-maya, which is red snapper cooked in a sour soup made from tamarind and vegetables.

For the kids I made pata. Pata is a whole pig's leg, simmered in water with spices, then rubbed with seasoning and deep fried so the skin is crispy-crunchy. Both are among our favourite dishes here in the Philippines.

There was melon for dessert and cold iced tea. The family enjoyed eating together and the kids loved the pata. Even tatay Frank finished off the last of the meat, right to the last bone :-)

After their meal they went to their unit and prepared themselves for the afternoon. They had chosen to take a boat trip around the island, so at 2pm my workers Wangyu and Santo took them in our boat for an island tour.

They had a great time sailing in our boat and looking at the views of Isla Verde from the sea. They laughed when the boat was going across some waves and the water splashed Lyn's dad and he got wet.
By the time they arrived back before sunset they had been to many different places around the island. They saw caves and white sand beaches where they enjoyed swimming,

Back at the resort they enjoyed the sunset, then freshened up and took their dinner at 6 o'clock.

The night time bonfire is our night show for our guests. It seems it is always requested by them. As soon as they step into our resort when they arrive, guests will ask me if I will have a bonfire for the night. It is becoming one of the favourite things that our guests enjoy.

While we were enjoying the bonfire, tatay Frank fell asleep in the swing in by the sea as he likes the gentle sea breeze. The kids enjoyed grilling marsmallows while I had good chat with Lyn and her mom Letty.

Nanay Letty lay down on one of the stone garden sets watching the stars. Maica and Marcus used our telescope to watch the moon as there was a full moon that night.
It was only an overnight stay, but in that short period of time they said they had wonderful moments shared in Isla Verde.

Thursday, 12 May 2016

Jaira and her officemates are all good friends. They work in one department as researchers and decided to take a holiday at Isla Verde and stayed with us at the resort. Jem, jheng, Justin, Jaime, Angel, Tristan, Joseph and Ja are a bunch of good looking young girls and boys who in our language belong to coñotic group.

They arrived before noontime and I asked Wangyu and Santo, my workers here, to pick them up from Sawang by boat, as it was too hot for them to walk all the way to our resort. When they arrived, they rested for a while and had their lunch in our Tess Cafe.

After they finished their lunch they decided to relax and and the boys took a bottle of brandy, ALFONSO, and started to drink in the swing facing the sea. After a few minutes, the girls joined them and they shared some laughter while taking turns telling their own stories.
Before sunset they swam and snorkelled with their cam. And when the sun began to set they took the opportunity to get some photos of a sunset across the water.

Before it was fully night time they took baths and when they were refreshed they started to grill the meat I marinated for them. When they were done with their grilling, they asked for a banana leaf and set their dinner on the stone chairs under the mango tree.

I suggested they could spread the rice in the center of the leaf so they can have space for each of them for eating as they planned to eat with their hands.

At 7pm, they had a bonfire, and continued to enjoy drinks from their bottles of brandy. They hade some marsmallow, so they enjoyed that with their barbecue too. They finished their drinks by the bonfire about 4am.

Next day after breakfast, they went to Sawang to swim and do snorkelling. They loved the sea there as it was calm and water was so clear.

When afternoon came they were able to watch the basketball tournament in our baranggay.

They left late in the afternoon, yelling from the boat when they passed in our resort, as we were waving to them.